Former NFL player joins Ryan's staff

BALTIMORE — One of Speaker Paul Ryan’s newest aides has a unique résumé for Capitol Hill.

Derrick Dockery played football at the University of Texas under Mack Brown and appeared in the Cotton Bowl. The offensive lineman was drafted by the Washington Redskins and later got a $16 million signing bonus to join the Buffalo Bills. He went on to play for 10 seasons in the NFL and earned an MBA from George Washington University.

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Ryan (R-Wis.) has hired Dockery, 35, to help him build coalitions with state and local governments and the business community.

Dockery first came to Capitol Hill in 2012, as an intern on Ryan’s Budget Committee. In 2015, he went to work for Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), and Ryan hired him at the end of last year. He started with Ryan in January.